Today's News

INDEPENDENCE — The Grayson County administrator’s office has released a survey for citizens to determine the need for high-speed internet availability in the county.

Carl Caudill, technology director for the county, said the survey will be made available both online and on paper. Paper copies will be available at local libraries and the office of The Gazette and The Declaration, at 108 West Stuart Drive in Galax.

WHITETOP — A group of old-time musicians, some from as far away as Pennsylvania, converged on Whitetop Mountain in western Grayson County on July 14 to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the last White Top Folk Festival.

The festival ran from 1931 to 1939 (except 1937) on the second-highest peak in Virginia. The 1940 event was cancelled because of severe flooding and it never resumed. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt famously attended the 1933 festival.

The 2019 anniversary observance was organized by Rita Scott and Greg Troxell.

A driver has been charged in connection with a Pipers Gap crash on Aug. 1 that seriously injured a Galax couple, according to a report issued by the Virginia State Police.

The report said that a 2001 Dodge Dakota, driven by Jessie Lee Jones, 63, of Fancy Gap, rear-ended a 1989 Ford Ranger driven by Roger Lee Brown, 66, of Galax, which was attempting to make a right turn from Pipers Gap Road onto Cockerham’s Loop. The Ranger overturned on its side.

Over the course of this week, about 40,000 musicians and fans will attend the 84th Annual Galax Old Fiddlers’ Convention.

Fans of old-time and bluegrass from the Twin Counties to California, from the British Isles to Australia and Japan, will be in Galax playing string music into the wee hours under ball field lights, seeing old friends and camping no matter the weather.

Congressman Morgan Griffith (R) represents Virginia’s 9th District in the U.S. House of Representatives. The district covers much of Southwest Virginia, including the City of Galax and Carroll and Grayson counties.

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Data recently released by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and analyzed by the Washington Post has renewed attention to the origins of the opioid crisis afflicting communities across our Commonwealth and country.

HILLSVILLE – The number of Carroll County kids in foster care continues to grow, while the number of local foster homes fails to meet the rising demand.

Those attending a recent event to bring attention to foster care and adoption agree that one solution to the county’s challenge could be turning the now-closed Southwestern Virginia Training Center into a home for foster children.

Fitness enthusiasts and athletes are welcome to attend open gym day at a new facility in Galax this weekend, to put their skills to the test in a trending style of fitness training.

Power Up OCT, now open on Shaw Street, presents athletes from all walks of life with top-notch resources and features an indoor obstacle course and a functional training environment designed by the facility’s owner, certified Spartan Coach Josee Williams.